Podcast – Building a better workforce for screen freelancers 

In the Seat: Lisa Purse and Andrew Philip 

“Freelancers make up almost half of the UK film and television workforce. Without freelancers, the industry simply wouldn’t exist,” Lisa Purse said. 

Lisa is lead researcher on the Screen Industry Voices report titled ‘Freelancers: Building Workforce Resilience for Growth in the UK Film and Television Industries’ published in April this year.  

Together with co-author Andrew Philip, both University of Reading academics from the Film, Theatre and Television department are hoping that their report will help put better measures in place for the freelancer sector of the British workforce. 

Sharing their findings in this episode of You’re in Studio One, Lisa and Andrew interviewed 25 screen freelancers and discovered many stories of unfair treatment. 

The interviews revealed that experienced producers were forced to sell their homes to survive financially and many work without basic benefits like sick pay or holiday pay.  

As a result, the researchers have laid out four key recommendations and are calling for:  

• A dedicated minister for self-employed workers to advocate for freelancers across government departments. 
• Industry-wide standards for employing freelancers, with a certification system linked to funding eligibility. 
• Data collection on the freelance workforce as a condition of receiving tax credits and funding. 
• A comprehensive online resource to help freelancers find tailored information and support. 

The full report can be accessed here. 

Listen to the Podcast here   

You’re in Studio One

Over the last four decades, we’ve welcomed countless celebrities behind our microphones, recorded thousands of memorable adverts, and delivered professional voice overs to a vast range of clients, from leading medical agencies to children’s toy companies.    

Hosted by Callum Stott (Sales Director at Matinée Multilingual), ‘You’re in Studio One’ is a podcast that celebrates the variety of our creative productions by speaking to producers, clients, voice artists, educators, and others paving the way for the future.